The Director Will See You Now
by Metatron85
Summary: Jade has an unexpected interview with an actor who wants to break into movies. But as Jade talks to this guy, he turns out to be full of surprises. [OC friendship / JORI established]


**A/N: A one shot request from Boris Yeltsin (no, not THAT one) ;-P**

 **Please read and review!**

* * *

Another 13-hour day filled with meetings.

Jade felt relief when she was finally in her office. It wasn't as personal as the one at home, but Paramount did provide her with nice facilities. The lighting was very low key, not annoyingly bright like some offices. On one of the walls had a huge original one sheet for _Rosemary's Baby_ , circa 1968 and a poster for _The Godfather_. Jade wondered if this was once Robert Evans' office.

She was having a hard time getting used to all of the red tape that came with working under a huge studio. Before, the biggest company Jade worked for was Blumhouse. And she stayed there for four years, given free reign and final cut. Unfortunately, this new film required a budget that Blumhouse wasn't willing to venture into despite their love for Jade. With their blessing, she shopped the script around to the various big wigs. She almost got locked into a deal with Warner Bros, which had a rich legacy for epic horror films like _The Exorcist_ and _The Shining_. Sadly, James Wan came along with his own spec script and they chose to go with him for their one big horror flick for the year.

Then, Jade tried at Paramount. Feeling she wasn't going to get them to take her on, the young director relaxed and just chatted with an actress named Mimi in the lobby. Jade recognized her from an Anna Kendrick movie and the two hit it off. Some time later, Jade gets a call from Paramount, saying the big boss Jim Gianopulos requested to see her at her earliest convenience. Turned out the girl Mimi was the daughter of the studio chairman. She mentioned Jade's horror script and it peaked his interest. By next week, Jade met with producer Alan Argentini and her movie was no longer an orphan.

Sure it was a lot of work but Jade secretly enjoyed the nuts and bolts in movie-making. Sitting in with Argentini on some of the meetings helped her better understand the business side of the process. Part of her contract was she had approval of all print ads, commercials, posters and other promotional materials. She had a pet peeve for trailers that flat out lied to people or completely spoiled the movie. Then there was the casting. Jade had to sift through thousands of head shots to decide which ones would come to audition.

But it was all done, for today anyway. And Jade had her hour to unwind before being picked up by Tori. The half-Latina insisted on driving her wife to and from work. She would be so physically exhausted by the end of the day, she did not want her behind the wheel in LA traffic. Not having to worry about driving did turn out to have a benefit that Jade learned to enjoy. She poured herself a bit of brandy and laid down on her couch. The director developed a taste for the beverage from her shoot a year back in the south of France. Jade liked its connection to the movies of Alfred Hitchcock, as characters are often offered brandy to drink.

"Ms. West?" buzzed through the intercom.

The brunette groaned as she dragged herself up to answer it.

"Hello, Erika. How are you?"

 _"Sorry to bother you, Ms. West. But I have a Frank Gore here to see you."_

The name made Jade do a double take but it wasn't ringing any bells. If he had scheduled a meeting with her, it would have been on her phone.

"For what?" she asked.

 _"He tells me he's here to audition for PARANOID NIGHT."_

Jade was puzzled by all of this and tapped the intercom again.

"Then why didn't Mr. Gore, if that's his real name, audition with the other 200 actors today?"

She finished her brandy in one gulp, causing the woman to make a sour face. Some drinks are best imbibed slowly.

 _"He apologizes for his tardiness. His ride had to cancel because of a family emergency. He had to get a taxi."_

The pale woman sighed as she gently put down her empty glass. She checked the clock on her phone. Still another 45 minutes until Tori would show up.

"Fuck it," she said to herself before responding through the little machine. "Sure, send him up."

Jade sat in her chair behind an enormous glass desk. She appreciated how it was always cool to the touch. Sometimes she got so tired from writing, she would take a power nap right here and the table felt nice against her face.

She then straightened out the clutter a little in case he had a portfolio. Jade dug through her messenger bag and fished out a copy of the current draft and waited.

About five minutes later, there was a knock at the door.

"Yeah?" called Jade.

"Hello, my name is Frank Gore."

"It's open," the brunette couldn't help but yawn. "Come on in."

Jade began flipping through pages randomly until she had heard the closing of her office door. She looked up and noticed the thin but athletic man with sandy blond hair. He was moving toward her but seemed rather stiff in his movements.

"Pretty spacious in here," he chuckled. "Mind giving me a hint?"

"Big friggin' table at nine o'clock," Jade snidely replied.

She didn't notice what he was holding in his right hand.

Jade started thumbing through the script and asked, "So, who are you reading fo-"

Her question was broken by a loud clang from something hitting the glass.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"Jesus!" Jade added, this time standing, "Watch where you're going! What are you, blind?"

It was then she looked down and noticed the thin walking stick, permanently connecting Frank Gore and the carpet. He wasn't just another toe head with sunglasses, like she's been seeing every day in this town.

"Oh, shit" Jade said, standing up. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to be a bitch like that."

Frank shook his head and extended his left arm.

"It's alright. I've heard it all. Most people are too embarrassed to apologize."

Jade shook his hand. He had a firm grip.

"I'm sorry again for being short with you in general, too. It's been a long day. Please sit down."

She hesitated before taking her own seat, concerned that this Frank fellow wouldn't be able to find a chair. But he gracefully took a step back, felt with both hands for two arm rests, and sat down. Impressed, Jade sat down as well.

"Don't worry about me," he smiled. "I've been like this since I was little. Born with detached retinas."

Jade folded her arms.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Frank insisted. "I can get myself around." He cleared his throat, feeling the 'hey, you're blind' preliminaries were out of the way. "So, anyway, I was thinking about auditioning for the role of Jeffrey."

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me," Jade said.

Frank let out a hearty but sincere chortle.

"Now THAT sounds like the real you, Ms. West. It sucks meeting new people and their first instinct is to drop any sense of humor. I want you to be comfortable around me, please. I'm not broken; I'm fine. I just have a more intimate appreciation for stuff that others take for granted; sounds, tastes, sensations."

Jade nodded, thinking he was right. She ought to treat him like everyone else.

"So, why are you late?" she spat. "8 am to 4 pm were the auditions. What gives?"

The sandy-haired gentleman grinned.

"I'm sure your assistant informed you that my ride cancelled at the last moment. Then I had to think of something else. I hesitated for calling an uber. Had a bad experience. So I gave up and called a cab. He was okay, I guess. That was until we reached the studio and he tried to scam me."

Jade raised an eyebrow "How?"

"Told me the fare was $20. I gave him a $20 bill but he kept insisting I really gave him a $5. But that was bullshit. See, I fold my twenties long ways so I knew I handed him the right one. My brother helps me organize my money by folding it. Fives are unfolded, tens folded in half like a square, twenties folded long ways."

"What about dollars?"

Frank dug into his pocket and showed a handful of coins with either George Washington or Sacajawea on them.

"These are much easier to handle for machines if I have to get a subway ticket or if I want a soda."

"What happened with the cabbie?"

Frank sighed, "Oh, it became this big public fight. And I got in his face - wasn't hard, his breath led me right to it - and yelled that not only was he trying to scam me but he dares to cover up his misdeed by accusing my brother of scamming me. I've trusted him with so much and he never, ever took advantage of me. So naturally I was pissed."

Jade leaned forward, wanting to know the rest.

"Then what happened?"

"Of course, we drew a crowd. And people were automatically ready to back up the blind man. One guy confirmed that he was lying about the money and threatened to kick his ass if he didn't leave right now. Yeah, you meet some assholes. But for every one, you run into about 20-30 well-meaning people. A little condescension but that comes with the territory."

The filmmaker gazed down to the screenplay on her desk, remembering the task at hand.

"Alright, Frank. Where did you hear about the casting?"

" _Cruel Dead_ ; I listen to that podcast all the time. Last week's interview with you let me know about this movie."

Jade nodded.

"What's your background? I mean, have you held down previous acting jobs?"

"Eh, mostly voice work. Commercials, radio ads, cartoons...you name it. Got to meet some cool people in the voice actor community. I once ran into Billy West, Rob Paulson and Jim Cummings all in one day. Billy did Fry's voice asking one of the interns to take our picture. Then he did Zoidberg and said I can look at the picture and remember the fun time we had."

Jade could not resist and giggled at the joke. Those guys didn't coddle him; they treated him like a buddy. She knew she had to extend the same courtesy.

"Tell me...because I think its an amazing coincidence that a guy named Gore wants to be involved in a horror film. Why did you want this part?"

Frank just sat and considered the question.

"Can I be frank?"

"I thought you wanted to be Jeffrey," Jade shot back.

"Funny," he chuckled. "I mean apart from the obvious (Jeffrey being blind and all) I wanted to prove something to myself and other people."

"And what's that?" Jade asked.

He took a long breath.

"My mom's a nurse and dad's a master chef. Probably heard of his restaurant; Linguine's?"

Jade's eyes widened.

"I have. The food is to die for."

"Then there's Adam, my little brother. The big prodigy; founded Bartleby Basics right out of high school. They make electronics, mostly working in hospital equipment."

"Wow," said Jade.

"Yeah," Frank said, dragging out the word. "We did good for ourselves. Everybody was a little hesitant about me going into show business. Not that they wanted something more concrete for me to fall back on but they were concerned that nothing would be out there for me. What, some stupid blind kid acting? Get out of here!"

She really felt for this guy. He had confidence but it wasn't easy to acquire over the years.

"My parents think I can't do these things but every day I get more independent. And I have my brother to thank for that. I've been this way his whole life and we had fun growing up. He's helped me when I needed it but knew to back off when I said I got it."

"Bet he helps you out with your lines," Jade figured.

Frank shook his head.

"Nah. I mean, not these days. Been seeing this girl for about four months. I think its getting serious. She loves going over lines with me."

"What's she like?"

His face lit up the more he thought about her.

"She's great. Love the way her hand feels on mine. Always smells amazing. A bit loud but that just makes it easy for me to find her in a crowded room. We're both very lucky."

" _We?_ "

Frank nodded, "To have someone so special. At least I _hope_ you're still married."

"How did...?"

"I deliberately use my left every time to shake hands. I feel for a wedding ring; an old habit back when I was dating."

Jade scoffed.

"You keep surprising me, Frank."

"Please call me Frankie. Less formal."

"Yes, and Ms. West is my mother. You can call me Jade."

"Sweet," he nodded. "So?"

"So what?"

"Do I get the job?"

Jade rubbed her chin.

"Let's see, attractive, cool and interesting. Nope, definitely not on-screen material."

He took off his sunglasses.

"How about these peepers?"

"Blue eyes, too?" Jade sucked her teeth. "I dunno."

"And to think, I was going to give you some notes."

Jade blinked.

"Notes? What notes?"

"I have some input on the Jeffrey character you might want to consider."

"Oh god. Here comes Edward Norton."

Frankie laughed.

"I'm not _that_ bad."

Jade folded her hands.

"What did you have in mind?"

"Well, in the middle of the movie you have Jeffrey feeling his way around the room, clawing at the wall, to reach the ringing phone. Come on, Jade. That's his room. Unless you have someone coming in at night to rearrange everything, Jeffrey will know his quarters like the back of his hand. Yes, I understand that you were trying to wonder how would you be in that scene. But I'm telling you, in very familiar surroundings, we can be pretty brazen."

Jade sat there nodding.

"You've got a point."

"I mean, sighted people have played blind for decades. And I think that has created some misconceptions. From what I've heard, you don't like cliches."

The former Goth smiled.

The two carried on for another half hour, jumping from topic to topic. They stayed mainly in the movie business but got the talking in politics and history. One story that Jade enjoyed immensely was the rather awkward way him and his new girlfriend met. Jade was snapped out of her conversation with the buzzing of her phone dancing around the table while on vibrate only.

The profile picture came up showing Tori blowing a kiss that time they went to the beach for the last time as merely girlfriends. There have been other pictures since but this will always be one of Jade's favorites.

"Hey, cutie! 'Sup?"

Frankie cleared his throat as he waited for Jade until the call was over.

"Do you have to?" Jade groaned. "Ugh, fine, fine, fine. Bye."

She then turned her attention to the actor.

"Sorry about that," Jade said. "Wife's running late and she's bringing my _lovely_ sister-in-law along for dinner. Say, you want to join us?"

Frankie chuckled.

"I..uh...would hate to impose..."

"No way," she insisted. "Besides, I'm having a blast talking with you and hate to end it so soon. Tori would like to meet you too."

He sniffed and quipped "Judging from what I smell, neither of us are fit to drive anywhere."

Jade readied her phone.

"It's cool, I'll arrange for a car to take us to the restaurant. I'll call the misses on the way to let her know we have a fourth."

* * *

Jade and Frankie went to Bossa Nova which was not far from the studio. Normally, Tori and Jade favored the Veggie Grille. But their new dining comrade was really in the mood for some salmon, so a mixed grille/seafood establishment was better accommodating.

Jade called Tori in the car so that the Vega sisters knew to rendezvous with them here.

"Should be another twenty minutes," she said, checking her texts.

Frankie revealed himself as something of a foodie. While the quality of presentation was immaterial to him, his kinship with aromas and tastes made his palette rather sophisticated. After asking a couple of questions with the waiter, he had already made up his mind. He would order the smoked salmon with a baked potato and fruit salad on the side.

"The best meals I've found," he told Jade. "Are the ones that represent all food groups. I don't mind the vegan lifestyle but you'd have to consume a lot of peanuts and those wacky shakes to make up for all the protein you're not getting by cutting out meat and dairy."

Jade laughed because in LA that was considered an unpopular opinion. And she was inclined to agree.

"If you have moral or spiritual reasons, that's cool. But we're omnivores for heaven's sake. We need to consume a little of everything. You think before the farmer came along, other animals were sitting by chickens waiting for eggs?"

They were not going to order any of their food before the rest of their company arrived, so Jade ordered some appetizers while Frankie suggested they kick things off with a white wine. Jade had been invited to numerous tastings but didn't fancy wine. Frankie walked her through the proper way to appreciate wine and its subtleties.

His phone rang but went to voicemail because he didn't realize he left it silent.

"You got a call from...Tara?"

"Oh, that's my girlfriend" he chuckled. "See, everything on my phone is voice-activated and she was trying to program her number..."

Jade put out her hand to Frank's as a signal to hold that thought. She turned around when she heard her better half.

"For the last time, Treen; it wasn't Jake Gyllenhaal. It was some random guy."

"Don't tell me..."

"Trina?"

"Frank?"

Before Jade or Tori could react the older Vega and blond boy joined hands.

"Oh my god; THIS was your audition?"

"Why do you say it like that?"

Trina rolled her eyes.

"Because Jade West, the one over there, is married to my sister."

"Holy crap, really?" Frankie said, looking around despite it being moot.

"Believe it, guy" Jade confirmed and turned to her sister-in-law. "So, you're Tara?"

"Yeah," Frankie said. "I gotta fix that."

Tori chimed in, "Darn, they say Hollywood is small but this is nuts."

Trina made a glare at Jade as she talked to Frank.

"Jade wasn't mean to you, was she?"

"Relax, babe" he sighed, then followed with a kiss. "Jade is totally cool and I got the job."

The elder Vega hugged her boyfriend and gave him a kiss.

"So happy for you," Trina said.

Frank was ecstatic when everyone sat around him.

"It's awesome that you guys are already friends," he said. "Now that I'm on board, you'll be seeing a lot of each other."

Jade and Trina exchanged looks.

"Great," they both said.


End file.
